The Seminole Tribe in Florida is one of the most powerful in the state, and they are planning to reopen their biggest casino this week. Thursday at 7 pm will mark the reopening of Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Tampa, the state’s biggest resort.
The resort has been closed since March 20, when the Seminole Tribe agreed to shut their doors in an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Extreme health and safety measures will be implemented, and the tribe has worked closely with health officials.
Hard Rock will be introducing its new “Safe and Sound” program upon relaunch, and the organization has partnered with EcoLab to unveil this program. All six of the Seminole tribe casinos will be reopening with this new plan in place.
The Seminole Tribe did not announce a reopening date for their other five casinos in the state, but an announcement is expected soon. The casino in Tampa features a 245,000-square-foot gaming floor, making it one of the largest in the United States.
All employees and guests will be forced to have their temperature checked before they are allowed entry into the casino. Guests will be required to wear masks, and the casino will provide masks to anyone that does not have one.
Hard Rock has installed barriers between players and the dealer at all table games to ensure safety. There will also be thousands of slot machines that are disabled to create social distancing, and hand sanitizing stations have been set up.
Customers have flooded reopened casinos in other parts of the country, and that is expected at the Hard Rock as well. Occupancy will be limited to just 50 percent of the normal capacity, which means that long lines could start to form outside of the casino.
Live Sports Take Place in Florida; More Pro Sports Welcomed
While several states throughout the country have shut down all sporting events, that isn’t the case in the Sunshine State. The UFC began hosting events in Florida on May 9, and they have many other events on the schedule.
A pair of charity golf matches were also scheduled to take place in Florida, marking the first live golf since March 12. The TaylorMade Driving Relief charity golf match took place near Miami on Sunday, and another major charity match is set for this weekend.
Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning will take on Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady in an event that is expected to raise more than $10 million for charities fighting the coronavirus. Florida Governor Jim DeSantis has welcomed both matches, and he is open to even more sporting events taking place in his state.
DeSantis became the second governor to openly invite professional sports teams to practice and play games in his state. Arizona was the first state to offer the invitation, but Florida made the same offer the following day.
Florida is home to several professional sports teams, but they are willing to host other teams that are forced to relocate. Major League Baseball has already explored the idea of moving teams to Florida that are not allowed to play in their home ballparks.
DeSantis was quick to point out that all games or events must take place without the presence of fans, and teams and leagues must follow all of the health and safety guidelines that have been implemented. Florida has been hit hard by the pandemic, but they were one of the first states to loosen stay at home restrictions.
